Democratic Sentinel, Volume 7, Number 27, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 August 1883 — Why We’re Dyspeptic in Hot Weather. [ARTICLE]

Why We’re Dyspeptic in Hot Weather.

“As a rule,” said Dr. J. A. Oldshue, “the American lunch is responsible for American dyspepsia. The prevailing custom of perching on high stools where elbow room is at a premium, and shoveling down hot dishes is barbario and only fit for Hottentots. Most of the lunch-rooms in the lower part of the city are fixed up in this way. The American breakfast, with ite steak, potatoes, hot coffee and ice water, taken at an early hour in the morning, is hard enough on the digestive functions; but the repetition of this thing at noon or 1 o’clock is even worse, swallowed as it is with precipitation and want of care. “Lunch should be a small, cooling, quiet meal. It should not be heavy enough to fill the stomach, but just light enough to stay the cravings until the heavier meal in the evening. “In this weather lunch should bs a cold meal. Nothing is better than a slice of cold spring lamb with mint sauce and salad dressed in the French style. A leg or a wing of cold green goose, or a bit of cold broiled gosling, is dainty and palatable. The heavy meats, such as beef and veal, ought to be avoided. They overburden the stomach, and render a man practically unfit for the afternoon work. Beer and ale ought not to be indulged in except by those who have heavy manual labor to do, and who can, therefore, throw off the somnolent effect. A good glass of cold claret, not iced, is refreshing and sustaining, but champagne, Burgundy and Hungarian wines are anything but good. They heat the blood and deaden the brain, and should be reserved for the dinner hour, when there is sufficient *time to properly absorb them. But champagne, unless very dry, is not a fit thing to accompany eating. It clogs the internal functions and is conductive of dyspepsia. “If any hot dish is eaten for lunch, it should be at the most a slice of fish. Nothing is more delicious than a piece of cold salmon or blue-fish, with either mayonnaise or plain salad dressing.”— Pittsburgh Gazette.